1. I See You

1 I SEE YOU

Koen

Fuck my life. What the hell had I gotten myself into? This kid was not my responsibility, yet I couldn’t help but sympathize with his plight. I was the youngest in a family of two boys and one girl. My sister, Willow, was the oldest, and she took the term overprotective to a whole new level. Even though there was only a year separating each of us, if someone messed with me or Riley, she was right in the mix, ready to throw punches. To this day, by her attitude alone, you’d think she was Amazonian-tall instead of barely tapping out at five two. It took everything Riley and I had in high school to keep her ass out of detention and get her to understand it was our job to do the protecting. A little barbaric thinking? Maybe. But it was the way our dad taught us to be. God rest his soul.

So when I said I got where Jett was coming from, I meant it. I saw a little bit of myself in him, which, quite frankly, scared the shit out of me. But there was something about both him and his sister which made me want to get closer, to learn about their past, and to be a part of their future. If only I could convince my Angel to tuck away her devil’s horns for five seconds.

Speaking of…my cell dinged with an incoming text from Jade.

Jade: Jett didn’t come home from school. Is he with you?

Me: No. Do you want me to see if I can find him?

Jade: Yes, please.

Me: Anything for you, Angel.

Jade: Stop calling me that.

Maybe I should change her nickname to Prickly Pear instead. Nah, she was undeniably angelic, even when she was being difficult.

After my father was killed in the line of duty when I was fifteen, there wasn’t any doubt my life’s calling would involve law enforcement. He was a good man, a great father, and a damn fine detective, who was taken from us too soon all because he was closing in on a lowlife drug dealer. For as long as I live, I’ll never forget the sound of my mother’s heart-wrenching wails the day we put him in the ground. Her anguish sealed my fate. There was no way I wanted to set myself up for that kind of pain.

Riley didn’t have the same qualms as me, considering he was engaged to his high school sweetheart. He followed our father’s footsteps to the letter; remaining in San Francisco and busting his ass while clawing his way to the top of the ladder, becoming the youngest captain the narcotics division had ever had.

Willow, as far as I knew, didn’t play the field nor did she have any serious relationships. She buried herself in her studies and after she graduated from college with a degree in psychology, she joined a well-known established practice as their newest grief counselor. In her spare time, she also volunteered with the SFPD; lending her ear and expertise to any officers who were struggling. I worried about her the most.

As soon as I graduated from the FBI academy in Quantico three years ago, I was assigned to a satellite office in the small town of Huntington, West Virginia, with the best damn team on the planet. Keaton Clarke, Noah Anderson, and Alaina “Lanie” Biggs were not only fantastic agents, the four of us couldn’t have been tighter unless we shared DNA. Nelson Travers—tech guru and hacker extraordinaire—and his wife, Sammy, who was the administrative assistant, were also close with our group, though we didn’t often hang out with them after hours.

Rounding out our crew was Duncan Palmer, our immediate supervisor, and Waverly Mitchell, the resident agent in charge of all our craziness. The two of them acted more like a parental unit, which was why I’d nicknamed them Mom and Dad.

Up until a few weeks ago, I was content with meaningless flirting and the occasional short-term relationship. There were no expectations to meet, no feelings which would eventually get hurt. It was perfect, or so I thought. Then, life as I knew it came to a screeching halt when my team and I walked into Over Easy, a local diner where Keaton’s girl, Henley Graves, worked. We’d gone there to finally meet the woman who’d captured my broody friend's attention when my gaze landed upon the dark-haired beauty. Jade Trumble was vigorously wiping up a spill from the floor, while simultaneously shooting daggers from her chocolate-brown eyes at some asshole who was spouting off to another brunette. It wasn't until Keaton jumped in the mix did we discover Henley was the focus of the man’s nastiness.

Things went from zero to sixty shortly after that, which led me to ignore the sharp tug I felt deep in my chest, figuring it was better for everyone to keep my distance. And it worked until a few days later when she was injured during a vicious attack, alongside Henley. I called her my Angel that night as the resolve I’d held on to by a thread began to crumble into a billion shards of endless possibilities.

Closing the lid to my laptop, I stood from the workspace I shared with Lanie, stretching my arms over my head to release the tightness in my back from sitting on my ass most of the day. The office was relatively quiet, considering the chaos we’d endured two weeks ago.

Henley and Jade had been on their way home from work when they were kidnapped and held hostage by a crazed serial killer, who—in a strange twist of fate—turned out to be someone we’d known for years. Keaton nearly lost the love of his life, and I lost every single reason for holding myself back from claiming what was mine.

Jade .

I was well and truly fucked.

To make matters worse, a few months prior, Henley had been expelled from Marshall University for plagiarism after someone hacked into the school’s system and replaced her final paper with a different one. That hacker was fifteen- year-old Jett. When he confessed, it shocked the shit out of all of us.

At the time, he thought he was helping out a guy who’d mistakenly turned in the wrong assignment, while also making a good bit of cash to ease the burden on his sister. He was a na?ve teenager, but he was no criminal. In reality, he was a damn genius, which was how we convinced Waverly to battle with the prosecution for leniency. The little community of Huntington would be better served by allowing Nelson to take Jett under his wing and teach him how to put his gift to good use. At least, that’s the way I’d presented it to her, along with the rest of my team. And it worked. The kid wouldn’t even have a black mark on his record, as long as he kept his nose clean. I only prayed he was keeping up with his end of the bargain.

While Henley—who was now Keaton’s fianceé—was recovering from the ordeal fairly well, all things considered, I couldn’t get a read on my Angel. She was closing herself off from our group, and while I understood her feelings of guilt, there was no way Henley or Lanie would let her get away with it for much longer. Especially considering how close they’d all become. Word around the office was, the girls were already circling the wagons to drag her little ass back into the fold.

“You’re not gonna hang out to see how it went at Marshall?” Noah called out as I began to gather my things. He was referencing how Lanie and Keaton had taken the evidence we’d gathered to the university in an attempt to get Henley’s expulsion reversed.

“That was my plan until Jett decided to pull a no-show at home.”

“Damn.” He shook his head. “We should’ve put a tracker on the kid. ”

“Or you could use the Find My Friend app,” Nelson interjected from where he sat huddled next to his wife.

“He shared his location with you?” I raised an eyebrow.

“Technically, no, but Waverly suggested I work around his consent.” He shrugged. “She figured he might pull this shit at some point.”

“Of course she did,” Noah chuckled. “Our RAC is always ten steps ahead of everyone else. Us included.”

“Bring it up, Nelson.”

Grabbing my jacket from the back of the chair, I slid my arms through the sleeves and stalked across the room. Tracking down a troubled teen may not have been on my agenda for the evening, and even though it would keep me in his sister's good graces, it was about much more than my desire to win her over. Jett opened up to me about his involvement in the scandal first, not someone else. Me . The walls may have been closing in on him, but still, I didn’t take his trust lightly. If he needed me, I’d be there. For both of them.

“It seems our young protégé has returned to the scene of the crime.” Nelson stared at the screen of his cell phone.

Fifteen minutes later, I pulled up outside of Lola’s Internet Café in downtown Huntington to see Jett sitting by himself at a table along the front glass wall. Putting my car in park, I shot off a quick text to Jade, then climbed out and made my way toward the set of glass doors boasting the café’s name.

This particular place had been where he’d met with the person who hired him for the hack job. He’d been smart though; recording their interactions on his webcam. Hunched over his laptop, fingers flying over the keyboard, he was completely unaware of his surroundings, which gave me a moment to study him.

Jett was tall for his age—nearing six feet. It was a trait he didn’t share with his vertically challenged sister, who was more than a foot shorter than my six-four frame. His dark-brown hair was shaved almost to the scalp on the sides; however, the top was kept long enough to spike straight in the air.

He clocked my approach the instant I was through the door, his shoulders tensing as I made my way through the crowded store. Easing into the booth opposite him, I didn’t speak, simply waited until he was ready to explain. Thankfully, he didn’t make me wait too long.

Sighing, he dropped his head to his chest. “How’d you find me?”

“I’m an FBI agent, kid. It’s kinda my thing.”

“Nelson,” he mumbled under his breath.

There was something working behind his deep-brown eyes; the color almost a perfect match to the ones which played a starring role in my every waking thought recently. I wouldn’t rush him though, even when every cell in my body urged me to shake the shit out of him for scaring his sister. He needed someone he could trust rather than a swift kick in the ass, and I was determined to be that somebody.

“I fucked it all up, Koen.”

Rather than placating him with falsehoods, I remained silent. He had fucked up…big-time, but when push came to shove, he’d come clean. It took a great deal of courage for him to admit what he’d done and even more to agree to testify against the asshole who paid him. His tenacity had earned the respect of my team, as well as their gratitude.

“The money was supposed to help her, not force her to work even harder than she was,” he continued. “She barely sleeps and it’s all my fault.”

I recognized the guilt he voiced, misplaced as it was, because I’d lived through the same with Willow. After my father was killed, we were lost to our grief; struggling to find a foothold in a world where he no longer existed. Mom did the best she could, however, it was Willow who slid seamlessly into the role of protector. She and Jade had quite a bit in common.

Jett continued to talk, only my brain was stuck on something he’d said moments earlier.

“Hold up.” I raised my hand in the air. “What do you mean she’s working harder?”

Unfortunately, we—meaning the feds—had to confiscate what was left of the money Jett had been paid as evidence, but as far as I knew, Jade hadn’t picked up any additional shifts at the diner.

“Umm.” His eyes swept the room, looking anywhere except at me.

Dropping my voice down an octave, I mimicked the same tone my dad used when we were in trouble. “Jett? What’s going on?”

“Listen,” he swallowed roughly. “If she hasn’t told you about her other job, then it’s not my place to do it either.”

Bingo.

“Other job?”

“Shit. Forget I said anything, okay?” He quickly secured his laptop and scrambled out of the booth, slinging his worn-out navy-blue backpack over his left shoulder, then made a beeline for the front door.

“Whoa, hang on.” I trailed behind him, exiting onto the semi-crowded street. “Anything you say to me stays between us, kid. ”

“Right,” he scoffed. His legs churned faster in an attempt to put more distance between us, but my stride was longer. “You’ll do whatever you can to get in her pants.”

Without thinking, I clamped a hand on his shoulder, jerking him to a halt in the middle of the sidewalk. He spun out of my grip and when he turned to face me, I locked down the anger at the harsh words he’d spewed to glimpse the vulnerable teenager standing before me, reminding myself he was hurting. Not in a physical way, rather the kind of hurt which festered deep inside, chipping away at your confidence until nothing was left except a host of insecurities.

Cocking my head to the side, I narrowed my eyes. “If you truly believe that bullshit you just laid at my feet, then I’ve been doing a shitty job getting you to see your worth.”

“Oh, I’m well aware of my worth to the FBI,” he scoffed, readjusting the backpack, which had started to slide down his arm.

“Christ.” Inhaling deeply, I blew out a ragged breath and prayed I didn’t completely fuck everything up as I switched tactics. “For someone who has a genius level IQ, you’re not being very smart.”

Jett stumbled back a step, his body jolting like he’d taken a shot to the gut. Not exactly the reaction I was going for, nevertheless, I’d use it to my advantage.

“I’m not stupid.” Even though he spoke through gritted teeth, his voice was quiet, barely discernible above the roar of the engine as a car passed by on the street.

“Never said you were, kid,” I countered.

“ They were wrong.”

His eyes were unfocused; lost to whatever memory I’d unintentionally evoked. Cautiously, I took a step, closing the distance between us .

“Who, Jett?”

“My parents,” he offered, shaking his head. When he looked up, I knew he was back with me. “It doesn’t matter anymore.”

“They called you stupid.”

My statement hung in the air for what seemed like forever until he finally nodded.

“Among other things.”

Obviously, there was much more in their background than the parts I’d been privy to from casual conversation; a deeper, darker story I was determined to uncover without using the resources available to me at the FBI. No. I needed to earn it.

“Let’s get you home, otherwise, your sister will call Henley for reinforcements.”

We walked side by side toward my mint-condition, cherry-red 1967 Chevrolet Camaro. It was one of two vintage cars my dad bought at auction the year before he was killed. The other, a silver 1966 Ford Mustang GT, was in Riley’s possession. Besides keeping drugs off the streets, bringing old cars back from the brink of destruction had been his passion. After we lost him, my brother and I worked tirelessly to restore the vehicles to their former glory; keeping our father’s memory alive in the process.

“Sweet ride,” Jett muttered, sliding onto the black leather seat.

“Yeah, she is.”

The engine purred to life, the vibration of it coming through the steering wheel as I pulled out onto the street.

“I’m sorry.” My apology broke the silence a few minutes into our trip. He sighed, but otherwise didn’t respond, so I continued, “I shouldn’t have insinuated you were anything other than the brilliant kid you are. But, Jett, you need to hear me clearly when I say, I’m not them.”

“I know you’re not and I was outta line with my comment too.”

“The truth of it is, I do want to get to know your sister better. There’s something between us I can’t explain, however, my interest in Jade is irrelevant to our situation. It has nothing to do with why I went to bat for you.”

“Then why’d you do it?”

Stopping at a red light, I angled my body to face him.

“I see you, Jett. I see the boy who’d do anything to protect his family, regardless of the consequences those actions might bring. I see you, Jett, because I acted the same way after my father was killed.”

Jade

I was pathetic, a glutton for punishment. It was the only reasonable explanation why I’d texted Koen when I’d strolled in from work to an empty house. I could lay all the blame on my neglected lady parts, since they screamed in protest over any attempt I made to maintain a modicum of distance between myself and the insanely gorgeous special agent. But the truth of the matter was, since the moment he’d shown up alongside Keaton at Over Easy in time to save Henley from a certain jackass, I was captivated.

Initially, I blew it off, not wanting to deal with the awkwardness, which would inevitably arise when things didn’t work out. I thought we were both on the same page until a series of unfortunate events led to Henley and I being attacked one night after work, then ultimately kidnapped by a serial killer. Koen’s protective instincts came roaring to the surface, blindsiding me with its intensity.

Suddenly, he was everywhere and I felt like I couldn’t breathe.

Under normal circumstances, I would have preened at the attention he showered me with, yet I held myself back…and not just with him. After Jett’s confession, I’d turned down countless invitations from my only two friends to get together, using every excuse in my arsenal to avoid them. I was mortified, plain and simple, coupled with an extreme case of guilt for not seeing what was happening with my baby brother. It was a heady combination.

“You’re useless, Jade Amber.” The sting of my mother’s backhand hurt less than her vile words. Biting the inside of my cheek, I held on to the tears threatening to fall. They would only make it worse. Trumbles didn’t cry. “Get this shithole cleaned up. We’ve got people coming over tonight.”

Shaking off the memory, I paced back and forth across the spotless living room floor, waiting for news from Koen. Lately, I’d found myself hurled into the past more often than not; to a place where I was a scared little girl fighting for Jett’s and my survival. The nightmares had come back with a vengeance, meaning sleep no longer held any appeal. It was moments such as these when I missed my gran something fierce. She would’ve known what to do.

When we first came to live with her, I was apprehensive, not knowing what to expect, since we’d spent so little time with her growing up. But it was like night and day. Gran was the polar opposite of the woman who’d birthed us. So much so, I often questioned if they were actually related. She even helped me get legal guardianship over Jett, considering the papers my parents left were bogus.

We spent three extraordinary years with her, then in the blink of an eye, she was gone, and we were alone in the world a second time. Her life insurance policy was large enough to pay off the house she left me in her will, and the small amount remaining would have supported us for a few months if our no-good parents hadn’t fucked us over once again.

We hadn’t heard a peep from them since the day they took off, but less than two months after Gran’s funeral, the losers showed up on our doorstep with their hands held out. Obviously, I told them to kick rocks and blow bubbles, but the two goons standing behind them, who pushed their way inside the house, didn’t appreciate my sentiment. It only took a couple of well-placed punches to my ribs and the threat of worse being done to Jett for me to hand over the almost two thousand dollars I’d hidden underneath a loose floorboard in my bedroom. Foolishly, I assumed it would be their last visit.

Months later, I continued to struggle with keeping the lights on plus food on the table with my income from working at a local grocery store. It wasn’t until I learned about a freelance opportunity from a former teacher, did I feel the tightness in my chest begin to loosen up. She put me in touch with a few indie romance authors who were looking for an editor and, before I knew it, my client list reached double digits. Then, when life started to look not quite as bleak, the grocery store let me go.

I’d pretty much given up hope when I spotted the help wanted sign in the window of Over Easy. Shirley Rae, the owner, took one look at the desperation written all over my face and gave me the job on the spot. From there, I met Henley and a short time later, Lanie.

In my previous experience, friendships came and went like the tide, but these two pulled me into the fold and refused to let go. Even after discovering the role Jett played in her shitshow, Henley continued to reach out. Every text, every time she begged me to meet up, as if nothing had happened, was a reminder of how badly I’d screwed up. It was my job to protect Jett, to keep him on a path headed toward greatness, yet I’d failed him miserably.

Pacing the floor in the living room, I was so lost in my head I nearly dropped the phone in my hand when it dinged with an incoming text.

Koen: I’ve got him.

Thank God.

Me: Thank you!

Koen: Always, Angel.

Taking my first full breath since I got home from work, I moved to the kitchen in search of something to make for dinner. Cooking was not my forte by any stretch of the imagination, but our nightly meal and the conversations we had around the table were how I kept a pulse on what was going on in Jett’s life. He’d been quiet lately, more than usual. Most of the time, it was a struggle to get him to give me more than one word answers.

Pulling a package of ground beef from the refrigerator, I grabbed a skillet out of the cabinet, then flipped on the front burner of the ancient stove. It was Tuesday after all, so tacos would have to do.

The sizzling and popping of the beef wasn’t enough of a distraction as I took in the state of our home. From the outside, the yellowish-brown paint was peeling and worn from years of neglect, yet it held a certain beauty that was timeless. Inside, the old Victorian had good bones, but she needed a makeover something fierce. The walls were covered in the same faded floral wallpaper Gran had chosen when the house was built twenty-five years ago, except two walls in the hallway leading to the living room, where I’d painstakingly stripped the hideous wall covering and painted them a deep gray.

There was still so much work to be done, but renovating cost a lot of money and time. Both of which I didn’t have. It was no wonder Jett got himself into trouble. Dammit. Just another way I’d failed to shield my brother.

Returning my focus to dinner before it burned, I stirred and seasoned the meat until all the pink was an even golden brown, then dumped the contents into a colander in the sink to drain the grease.

I’d just finished chopping vegetables and toasting the shells in the oven when the front door opened then closed. Whispered voices along with two separate sets of footsteps sounded against the hardwood floors, causing my insides to flip-flop as they approached. It wasn’t that I disliked Koen, in fact it was the opposite. I liked him so much it scared the ever-loving shit outta me.

Jett entered the kitchen first, his brown eyes teeming with remorse as he strode across the small distance between us, wrapping me in his arms.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered in my ear.

“Don't do it again,” I choked out, letting the worry bleed through my voice. Stepping out of his embrace, I asked, “Where were you?”

“Lola’s,” he muttered.

“Okay, so why didn’t you reply to any of my seven thousand text messages then? Why the secrets?”

“You wouldn’t understand. ”

“Try me, Jett.”

His shoulders tensed momentarily then he averted his eyes to a space behind me. Hands on my hips, I stared at him for several seconds, hoping and praying he’d finally open up, when the clearing of a throat reminded me, we weren’t alone.

How in the hell had I forgotten Koen was in the room?

“Jett, why don’t you give your sister and me a few minutes to chat.”

The rumble of his baritone voice sent shivers down my spine; my body's involuntary response to his close proximity. It was always the same whenever he was near. Hell, who was I kidding? The mere thought of him was enough to invoke a reaction. Stupid hormones.

Without answering, Jett rearranged the backpack, which was slung over his shoulder, higher up then shuffled out of the kitchen, likely headed for his room. When I heard the clomp of his secondhand sneakers on the stairs, I knew I was right.

“Angel.”

A shudder rolled through me at the nickname.

“Stop calling me that.”

He chuckled. “Never.”

Spinning around, I went back to the counter and gathered the bowls of toppings I’d prepared for our meal, spreading them out on the dining room table. Koen followed close behind, lifting the cast iron pan filled with meat off the stove, then setting it down on top of a potholder.

“Do you want to stay for dinner?”

The words were out of my mouth before I could stop them. If my hands hadn’t been full, I’d have slapped myself.

“Jade—”

“Forget I asked. I’m sure you already have plans. ”

“Jesus, woman. Can you stop for a minute and look at me?”

Sighing, I lifted my head, only to become mesmerized by the way his emerald eyes studied me. Almost as if they saw straight through my defenses.

“I’d love to stay.”

“Okay.” I huffed out a breath.

“But afterward, we need to talk.”

Swallowing around the lump in my throat, I nodded.

We worked in tandem to get everything on the table and after I hollered up to Jett, the warm hand wrapping around my elbow had my heart thundering in my chest.

“It’ll be fine, Jade.”

“I hope so.”